Robbers use Facebook ad as bait

STOCKTON - A 21-year-old man was robbed at gunpoint Thursday night when he went to a north Stockton church to buy shoes he saw advertised on Facebook, and it may not have been the first time the robbers have struck, authorities said.

STOCKTON - A 21-year-old man was robbed at gunpoint Thursday night when he went to a north Stockton church to buy shoes he saw advertised on Facebook, and it may not have been the first time the robbers have struck, authorities said.

The man went to the 4300 block of Christian Life Way near the Highway 99 frontage road and East Hammer Lane at 7:30 p.m., police said. When he arrived, he was confronted by a black man who was about 18 years old, 5 feet 11 inches tall, thin, wearing a black hooded sweatshirt and armed with a gun, authorities said.

The gunman demanded the victim's money before ordering him to get back into his car and leave, which he did, police said. A second man who accompanied the armed robber left the area. The second robber was described as a black man about 18 years old standing 5 feet 5 inches tall and weighing 170 pounds with a black hooded sweatshirt, police said.

A similar robbery occurred at the same location about 9:20 p.m. Dec. 30, authorities said. Three teenagers went to buy shoes they found for sale on Facebook but instead were robbed by two men - one armed with a black handgun - who took their cash and told them to leave.

"Detectives are looking into both cases to determine if they are related," said Office Joe Silva, a spokesman for the Stockton Police Department.

"Criminals don't like witnesses, so they are more likely going to want to meet in the evening hours and at a place where no one is at," Silva said. "That is why, if people are going to buy items from someone on Craigslist or another website, they should always meet at a busy public place during the day, arrive early and take someone with them."

Contact reporter Jason Anderson at (209) 546-8279 or janderson@recordnet.com. Follow him at recordnet.com/crimeblog and on Twitter @Stockton911.